The removal of a charged substance from a conductive fluid containing the same is disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/218,221 filed Mar. 25, 1994 owned by the Assignee herein, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,647,965, and which is incorporated herein by reference. The charged substance is drawn out of the flow path of the conductive fluid by the imposition of an electrostatic field. The charged substance is retained by a substrate comprised of an ionic resin.
A device and method for decaffeinating a caffeine-containing liquid (e.g. coffee) employing an electrostatic field generating assembly is disclosed by the Assignee herein in U.S. Pat. No. 5,443,709 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,503,724, each of which in incorporated herein by reference.
Applicants have sought to develop a system for the removal of a charged substance from a conductive fluid in which the process can be run batchwise or continuously. A continuously operating system can produce greater amounts of a conductive liquid with a reduced amount of the charged substance in a more economical way, and would be particularly suited for commercial separation applications. In addition, Applicants have sought to reach levels of charged substance removal that can produce exceptional tasting beverages such as decaffeinated coffee or tea.
It would therefore be a significant advance in the art of separating charged substances from a conductive liquid if apparatus and methods could be provided which enable the selective production of a liquid with a reduced amount of the charged substance in a cost effective and efficient manner for both batchwise and continuous applications.
It would be a further advance in the art if caffeine could be removed from a liquid containing the same (e.g. coffee or tea) without adversely affecting the taste of the resulting liquid.